Cal State LA Athletics

After leading the Golden Eagles to a 19^th consecutive winning season in 2015 and their most wins since 2009, Randi Smart returns for her eighth season as the head volleyball coach at Cal State LA
 
Smart guided the Golden Eagles to a 19-11 overall record in 2015 and Cal State LA earned a spot in the first-ever California Collegiate Athletic Association championship tournament. Cal State LA earned the No. 6 seed and fell in a spirited first-round match against tournament host UC San Diego.
 
The Golden Eagles were ranked eighth in the final NCAA Division II West Region poll, but missed a spot in the NCAA playoffs when a team outside of the top eight earned an automatic bid to the tourney.
 
Cal State LA had two All-Americans in 2016 for the first time since 2008 and Smart has now coached at least one All-American in five straight years.
 
In her first seven years as head coach, Smart has led Cal State LA to an overall record of 121-79. The Golden Eagles have collected 18 All-CCAA, nine All-Region and six All-America awards during her tenure. In addition, Iona Lofrano picked up the program’s second-ever CoSIDA Academic All-America award in 2015 and the first since 2000.
 
Smart led the Golden Eagles to a 17-8 overall record and a 15-7 mark in CCAA play in 2014. The Golden Eagles placed third in the conference for their best finish since 2009 and narrowly missed a spot in the NCAA Division II playoffs. Cal State LA was ranked 10^th in the West Region entering the final week and earned a three-set win at No. 9 Humboldt State to conclude the season. The Golden Eagles, who also owned wins over eventual region champion Sonoma State and No. 8 Dixie State, won seven of their last nine matches to surge into playoff contention.
 
The Golden Eagles had a player earn All-America honors for a fourth straight year, three players receive All-CCAA honors and another become only the second player in the program’s history to earn the CCAA Freshman of the Year award.
 
Smart directed the Golden Eagles to a 16-14 overall record in 2013 in a season that was highlighted by some dramatic improvement from several of the team’s young players.
 
The Golden Eagles made a strong surge at the end of the 2012 season, going 11-4 over its final 15 matches to finish the season with a 16-13 overall record and a 14-8 mark in the CCAA.
 
Smart led the Golden Eagles to a historic win over Cal State San Bernardino to highlight the season. Cal State LA posted a 25-14, 25-21, 25-8 sweep in San Bernardino, snapping the Coyotes’ 44-match conference winning streak. The win was the first for Cal State LA over Cal State San Bernardino in San Bernardino since 2000.
 
Smart guided the Golden Eagles to a strong finish in 2011 that resulted in a climb to 10^th in the final NCAA Division II West Region poll despite a season filled with costly injuries that threatened to halt the program’s impressive stretch of winning seasons. Cal State L.A. went 7-4 over its final 11 matches to finish the season with an overall record of 14-13 and an 11-11 mark in CCAA play.
 
Smart led the Golden Eagles to a 16-11 overall record and a 13-9 mark in CCAA competition in 2010. Cal State LA won five of its last six conference matches and qualified for its seventh straight NCAA tournament appearance. The Golden Eagles entered the playoffs as a No. 7 seed and fell in a tough five-set match to No. 2 seed Seattle Pacific in the first round.
 
Smart had great success in her first season leading the program in 2009. She directed the Golden Eagles to a 23-9 overall record and a spot in the NCAA Division II West Region championship match. Cal State LA finished third in the CCAA with a 17-5 conference record and earned the No. 6 seed in the NCAA Division II West Region playoffs.
 
Cal State LA outlasted No. 3 seed Sonoma State in five sets in the first round and swept No. 2 seed UC San Diego in three sets in the semi-finals before falling to top-seed and tourney host Cal State San Bernardino in the championship match. The Golden Eagles finished the season with a national ranking of 15.
 
Smart joined Cal State LA as an assistant coach in 2008 and helped the Golden Eagles to a 21-8 overall record. The Golden Eagles advanced to the West Region semi-finals for a fifth straight season and two players earned All-America recognition.
 
Smart came to Cal State LA after spending a combined 10 years as an assistant coach at Cal Poly Pomona and the University of La Verne.
 
Smart coached at Cal Poly Pomona for four seasons and helped the Broncos to a 73-40 overall record. The Broncos enjoyed the best year in the program’s history in 2005, going 24-3 overall and sharing the CCAA championship with Cal State LA. The Broncos were 21-7 and reached the NCAA playoffs in her final season with the program in 2007.
 
Smart earned valuable championship experience after serving as an assistant coach at La Verne for six seasons. The highlight of her tenure came in 2001 when the Leopards won their third-ever national championship. As an added bonus, she got to coach her younger sister, Ryan Winn, who was an All-American setter for the Leopards and was the 2001 National Player of the Year.
 
She came to La Verne after playing overseas in Austria for one year. She was a successful player at the NCAA Division I level as well, competing for two years at Utah State, where she was named “Rookie of the Year” as a freshman and for two years at Louisiana State, where she earned All-SEC honors. She graduated from LSU in 1998. She also earned All-CIF honors and was the league Most Valuable Player while at Glendora High School.
 
She lives in Glendora with her husband, Craig. They are the proud parents of two children, Tyler, 12, and Jordan, 10. She enjoys spending time with her family and traveling.